Effects of Increasing Salt Concentrations on Growth Performance of Pigs Weighing 60 to 140 lb

A total of 1,188 pigs (PIC 359 × 1050; initial BW 59.8 lb) were used in a 44-d growth trial to determine the effects of added salt on the growth performance of pigs weighing approximately 60 to 140 lb in a commercial setting. Pens of pigs were blocked by BW and randomly assigned to 1 of 4 dietary treatments in a completely randomized block design with 27 pigs per pen and 11 pens per treatment. Dietary treatments were corn-soybean meal-based with 20% dried distillers grain with soluble containing either 0.10, 0.33, 0.55, or 0.75% of added salt, which resulted in calculated dietary Na levels of 0.10, 0.19, 0.28, and 0.36%; and calculated Cl levels of 0.23, 0.36, 0.49, and 0.61%. From d 0 to 44, there was no evidence of difference to indicate that increasing salt beyond 0.10% influenced ADG, ADFI, F/G, or BW. This study reported that 0.10% of added salt in a diet containing 20% dried distillers grain with solubles was adequate for maximum growth performance in 60- to 140-lb grower pigs